Second Chance
by Izzu
Summary: Well, let just say... this was my version of the events after the ending of God Child. SPOILERS for GC 8! I really wanted a happy ending for Cain. And this is my hope...


az: Have you ever get caught by strange phenomena? I had, as when typing this; the electric was off and I lost the story… Yeah, had to retype..

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Disclaimer: I do not own Count Cain manga of which I have the scanlations courtesy of If I OWNED this... I'd be very rich and I won't be here writing this damn fic. Characters and original excerpts from the fic are copyrights of Kaori Yuki and SakuraCrisis for the translation.

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Second Chances 

Written by Azzie/Az .. Alienna Azuani .. Yami Azzie

The hoof sounds broke the silence as the horse carriage treaded its way across the countryside. The young assistant continued encouraging the horses to keep the speed as the sight of old castle loomed near. Almost sensing that the journey had almost reached its destination, a young lady stuck her head out of the carriage and marveled at the scenery.

'Mary, it's dangerous if you stick your head out like that!', scold the other occupant as the young lady obeyed. 'But father, I wanted to see—', she said as the carriage ceased to move. The girl grinned as she opened the door, almost falling off as the assistant readily caught the young mistress before her head get a chance to hit the ground. Unfazed by that, the young lady looked up to find the enormous castle loomed greatly before her.

'How big… ne, Raphy, let's explore this place!!', cried the girl as the irritated man inside, voiced out his disagreement. 'Mary… have you just forgotten that you had almost fallen off this carriage? Can you at least spare me the shock every time your overexcited manner gets out of hand?', groaned the elder man as the girl pouted at him.

'Aah… father, Raphy was always there to catch me and that's why I never worry. Oh, please… father, can Raphy accompany me to go exploring the castle? Pretty please…?', begged the child as the assistant spoke. 'Yes, professor… can we? Please don't be angry at Miss Rosemary, the journey had been very long and tiring—'

The professor sighed as he got off the carriage. 'All right then, go on you two!! But if any of you got into trouble, don't bother me. Raphael, once you're done, please take my things and all of those books up to the study. Right then, I'm getting in. Call me once lunch is ready—', said the professor as he entered the castle.

Mary grinned as she glanced towards Raphael. 'Yay!! Father let us go exploring!! Let's go, Raphy!! Wonder if this castle was also haunted—'

'Miss Mary—!!'

--

The old oak door creaked open as the professor entered the study. He smiled in satisfaction at the sight he beheld. 'Good… very good! This will be a very nice place for me to continue my research…', mused the man as he spotted a picture frame on the side of the table. He picked it up as he saw a picture of small child. Suddenly he smiled softly as he felt fond of looking at it.

'What a beautiful child this is. Pity I will never have a chance of meeting you—', whispered the man softly.

KYAAAA!!

MARY-SAMA!!

The professor jumped, startled as he heard the commotion. He immediately dashed towards a room where he heard the voices to find a hidden passage behind a wooden shelf. He carefully proceeded as he followed the source of the voices.

'Raphy… what were those vials on the shelf? It seemed so strange—', said the young girl as she felt her hand caught by someone. She gasped as she looked up to realize that it's her father.

'Mary… don't you go touching those vials! Those were the secret poison collection of the Hargreaves, rumored to have been kept hidden!! I had been wanting to search for it and continue my research as I heard that some of the lethal poisons had some strange effect that could benefit the medical world. I just hadn't expected to find it so quickly—'

'What do you mean, professor? What strange hobbies that this family have? Definitely not the typical noble family to have such secrets!!'

The professor nodded as he glanced around the secret chamber. 'Aah, yes… such abnormality that was evident in this family. No other nobles were as queer. Rumors have been circulating in those times where it was said that there was a curse over the family for generations. You had been young then, I supposed such rumors don't grab your attention. But, the people were beautiful as it was almost a cursed trait—', said the professor as he remembered the old photograph that he had found, '— And there were rumors about a young count called the Poison Count, to have such hobbies as to roam the dangerous London streets in search of strange mysteries. I had once heard that he even encountered Jack the Ripper!!'

'Waa… I never thought father knew such interesting stories!! I want to hear more!!', cried the girl as the man smiled fondly towards her. 'But that would mean we have to go upstairs. Here is not the best place for such things. Raphael, get the young mistress out and prepare some lunch—', said the man before Raphael stood still as Mary had refused to move.

The young assistant knelt over her. 'Miss Mary, what is it?'

The girl shrugged as she pointed towards a direction at the edge of the room. 'I heard something coming out of the tin box!', said Mary as the professor glanced towards the direction, as he saw a large steel box at the corner of the chamber. 'Silly girl, this was just a normal—', the professor stopped abruptly as he touched the surface of the box.

'Professor, what was it?', queried the assistant as he watched the elder man continue observing the box. 'It's strangely cold… and there seemed to be a motor connecting to the box to make it so—' he mused as his hand vibrated softly over the cold, steel surface.

'Raphael, help me open this—', said the professor as he found an opening. The assistant obliged as he helped to open the box. What was found after caught the two by surprise, as the professor gave a loud gasp…

--

He opened his eyes to find that he was lying on a soft bed. His sight returned as he found himself back in his nightmare for he realized that he was back inside the familiar room that he had never dreamed of returning to. He glanced towards himself as he saw that he was dressed in a silken robe and he was wrapped in the most comfortable mattress he had felt in years.

He slowly rose and sat on the bed as pondered over this strange occurrence. 'Why am I here? Didn't I die already? Or was everything… a dream? A horrible, cruel and malicious—'

'Aah, I say that our guest has awaken!! Pardon me for barging in, but my assistant was busy with my daughter and I had nothing to do. It was almost a week since we arrived here. Care for some warm, late breakfast?'

His eyes widen with horror and fear as he looked up and saw the person sitting down beside him. His body froze as the man looked at him in surprise. 'Is anything troubling you? Here, have some porridge. It can warm you up. Seriously speaking, I had never expecting to find you down there and it's been so long. Thank goodness that we could save you in time! I guess some of the rumors were true—', said the professor as the lad obediently ate the offered spoonful of porridge.

'Wh… who are you? Why are you being so nice to me?', the lad croaked as he finally overcome the shock of seeing the person. It came to his surprise as he felt like he had long since using his voice. The professor smiled as he put away the bowl aside. 'Oh, I'm sorry of not introducing myself earlier. But you don't need to fear, I am not going to hurt you—', said the professor as he tousled with the lad's dark hair. The lad froze again as the professor spoke again. 'I'm Dr. Alex Rolfe Hattiman. I was a professor at the Oxford University but I had seldom taught there as I had wanted to continue my research here in the countryside. So, may I know your name? My daughter and assistant are the only ones here other than me, but I will introduce—'

'It's the same… even the names are similar—'

The professor frowned as he caught those sentences. 'Pardon?', he said as the lad looked up, apologetically. 'S… sorry. You have looked so strikingly similar… even so, I— No, it can't have been. This must have been a coincidence—', said the lad as Dr. Alex nodded at him. 'Err, yes… m, my name… I am Cain Cornwall Hargreaves… and sorry for just now. I… you looked so similar to my father—'

To his surprise, the professor gave a loud cry and embraced him tightly. 'It's a miracle!! Never in the history of medical science will people believe!! But lo… the proof was here!!'

Not understanding the reasons for such outburst, Cain chanced for a question. 'Err, pardon me… but may I ask? Do you know anything about my family? I wanted—' Suddenly the professor grew sober as he gave him a sad look. 'Poor child… you didn't realize it yet, eh? The Hargreaves had since disappeared from the public for a very long time. If even any of the descendants were alive, there were none known. It has been almost a century—'

'What—?', gasped Cain as he thought of Merry, Oscar, Uncle Neil and Clay. But then, something struck him. 'Almost a cen… century?! What do you mean?!', gasped the young count as the professor continued his hold on his shoulder. 'It's true. Now is already in the middle of the twentieth century since you were placed inside the cryogenic box. But don't worry yourself silly. You are always welcomed to be a part of my family. I had just wondered if I could meet you after I saw the old photograph. I had this sudden thought that I could treasure that lovely boy in the picture. It's a great honor to have been given that chance, my daughter could finally have someone else to play other than with my assistant—'

'B.. but, I don't understand—' _And you talked the way that father would have… _

Dr. Alex took out a letter as he placed it in Cain's palm. 'Read it. You will understand. And whatever happens from now on, you still deserves all the love and affections that we could offer to you—', said the professor as he embraced the lad again and planted a soft kiss on the forehead. '— But first, you must learn to forgive yourself. Take your time. I will be at the downstairs hall, if you needed me. I'll introduce to you my sweet daughter and assistant—', he said as he walked out of the room.

Cain looked down towards the piece of paper as he opened it to read. To his surprise, it was signed by none other than his own father, Alexis Hargreaves.

--

To my beloved Cain…

By the time you read this, my precious, I would probably be dead in some abandoned graveyard for all you might have cared. But then again, I do not know… if by the time you'd wake up again, that any of your fond relatives would still be here with you. It's a tough task, but I had wanted to repent on everything that I had owed to you. So please be alive longer, my beloved son…

Hah, then again as I said it I could have never imagined that I would still be alive. That was a fine machination you have at the tomb. I wondered how it was possibly had been achieved but the trap that was hidden was definitely a stoke of brilliance. It was just the fact that young Merry had bothered to ask for help and saved my life that was giving me a bother. I have never been a good father to both of you and yet…

--

'Where am I? Hell was not so homely like this…', murmured Alexis to himself as he heard voices nearby.

'Eh, is there anything you could do?'

'I'm afraid not. He's as good as died now. I don't think we had any possible way to save his life!!'

'Unh, but there must be something..! Uncle Neil—!'

He slowly walked out of the room towards the source and saw a lot of familiar faces crowding over a bed. As he crept nearer, he realized that they were surrounding his son, who was lying still on the bed. He walked nearer and as they others started noticing him, they backed away as Alexis reached out towards his son.

'Alexis!! What are you doing entering this room!! That's why I was absolutely against it when Merry had wanted to save your wretched life!! If you dared hurt Cain again, I—'

'Did you really wanted to die so much, Cain…?', spoke Alexis as he touched his son's cheek and felt the faint gust of wind; the only indication that showed that Cain was still alive. He glanced towards Clay. 'Were you the one who found him—? Is there anyone else—'

'No one. When I arrived, he was lying in the casket on top of Riff. The strange thing was that Riff had seemed to have died very long. I saw his bony hands—'

'Oh, so _he_ was dead. That's why—', murmured Alexis to himself as he started to lift Cain's motionless body into his arms. Seeing this, Lord Neil immediately tried to stop him.

'Alexis!! What are you planning to do to him!!?'

The said man turned a glance towards Lord Neil as he gave a cynical grin. 'Cain will only die when I, Alexis Hargreaves dies first. So as long as I am alive, I will not let Cain slip away from me. Besides, the family's curse would not bother anyone after this as long as both of us were gone so what would you lose?', said Alexis again as he straightened up from the bed.

Suddenly, Merry rushed forward towards him. 'No please, don't leave!!', she cried as Alexis gave her a faint hint of smile. 'It's okay. At least now, you can finally live happily with your family, eh? Cain had done a lot, protecting you all this while. Don't waste his effort—', he said as he knelt and gave a soft kiss on her cheeks. Merry's eyes started brimming with tears as she gave a brief hug to her father and brother.

Alexis rose as he started walking towards the door, carrying Cain with him. 'I… I won't forget you two!! Re… regardless of what father had done, Merry will always remember that I am your daughter!! Please don't forget me too—', cried Merry as Alexis turned around. 'Thank you. And perhaps, we will be together again in the next life…'

With that Alexis left with his son, leaving the rest of the family members dumbfounded…

--

I have tried my best in trying every possible method that I knew to save you. Though, I did not dare tried some of those experiments that Delilah had once used on you. It would be the ultimate betrayal to you and I could not have the heart to put you into such suffering anymore. But I felt the need to make up to you for everything that I've done. Therefore after I had tried everything that I could, I had decided to put you under stasis. I've placed the hope that in whatever future that you will wake up to, a way to save your life could be found.

I'm sorry for what I did to you before. I guess not only Augusta had gone crazy after you were born, but I too. Perhaps, a hint of regret in me rose as I saw you; bearing an exact semblance to me and possibly the same fate. I still regretted it that I had done nothing to fought against your mother's seduction. If I did, then maybe our fates will not turned out like this. Forgive me for you have suffered in my own guilt. Instead, it was an irony that Augusta be the one to die first, isn't it? Well, too late to say anything now...

Alas, I regret that I won't be able to be there anymore for you. Goodbye, my child. I hope your life would be better after this…

Alexis Hargrea…

--

The signature was half-written as it was followed by small dots of dark red. And then it dawned to him that his father might have tried to even transferring his own lifeblood to him to keep him alive. Having that thought in his mind, drops of water started brimming in his eyes and fell onto his hand. Cain jumped as he saw his own tears falling on the old letter and started crying heavily…

--

'Hello? May I come in..?', said Dr. Alex as he entered the room; only to find that Cain was asleep and the bowl he had left before was empty. The senior professor smiled as picked up a cloth and wiped some traces of rice from Cain's cheeks. He picked up the abandoned mattress and tucked the young count in gently. He was about to exit the room as he heard something stirred…

'Do you really mean it, about what you said before?' The professor turned around as he saw the young count, now sitting upright. 'Can I really be a part of _your _family?', said Cain again, unsure.

The man smiled as he walked nearer and extended his hand invitingly. 'Of course you can, dear. You are always—' Immediately, Cain jumped off the bed and embraced the man tightly. 'Oh thank you, thank you!! Then, can I call you _father_?', whispered Cain as he looked up towards him. Dr. Alex found himself moved with the sentence as he saw Cain's golden tinged green eyes, red as if he had been crying all out the minute before. He smiled as he ruffled Cain's hair.

'Of course, here… let me take you to see my sweet Rosemary. She'd definitely love it for you to be her new brother—'

--

'Here we are… Mary!! Raphael! Come here… There's someone I'd like to show you—!', cried the professor as Cain blinked at the bright lights shining into his eyes when the walked out into the garden. The said Rosemary and Raphael dashed hurriedly towards them as Cain gasped at the sight of him.

_I can't believe my eyes—! When I saw the professor I thought I was dreaming, but this? It's like having Merry and Riff with me again!!_ Cain glanced towards Dr. Alex before looking back towards the other people. _Did father's words came true? That in the next life, we'll all be together again? Can I really have a happy life, a second chance… father? Can I still felt the love that you had been unable to show to me all those times..? Then, wouldn't it mean that my existence is no longer cursed— _

'Cain…? Cain!! You all right?'

Cain blinked as he found the professor staring at him and trying to show his daughter at him. 'Aa, doc— err, father, I'm sorry—' The professor turned to his daughter as he spoke softly. 'Mary, come greet your new brother, Cain. Cain, say helo to Mary…', said the professor. Before Cain could react, young Mary suddenly jumped at him and embraced him tightly. The young count stuttered as he knelt before her.

'Finally… I've been waiting for this for a long time—!', whispered Mary as it caught Cain speechless. He nodded his head softly as he continued hugging the young girl affectionately. _I''ve also been waiting for this… my beloved Merryweather… _

Cain released his grip around the girl as he glanced at the professor's assistant. The man called Raphael bowed before smiled at him warmly. _Riff… you were here too. _

Cain smiled back as he turned to the professor. His eyes soften as he moved to embrace the man. 'This was very meaningful for me. Thank you very much…' _And I really mean it… Uncle Neil himself would not have imagined it to be possible.. _

_I love you… father _

'And I love you too… my precious little doll…', whispered the professor as it gave Cain a great surprise. But then he ignored it as he continued embracing the man that had appeared to be the exact mirror of his father, Alexis. At least now, his future was no longer black anymore.

And they lived happily ever after…

Or is it?

FIN

The end… and that's all?

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az: What did I ate to think up of this fic idea… well, review if you liked it… Well, this is something that I wanted to write as I felt that the ending was too sad. This was my hopeful wish for a happy ending for Count Cain.

Hehe… review if you think it's good. Sorry if there is any mistake… Azzie


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